ESC Wishlist + Save for Later vs. FAVS Wishlist Bar: An In-Depth Comparison

Introduction

Choosing the right wishlist app is a common friction point for Shopify merchants. Wishlists can lift conversion by keeping interested shoppers engaged, but the marketplace offers countless single-purpose solutions that vary widely in design, reliability, and long-term value.

Short answer: ESC Wishlist + Save for Later is suited to merchants who want a very simple, low-cost "save for later" feature tucked under the cart and basic wishlist categorization. FAVS Wishlist Bar offers a more polished, branded experience with guest wishlists, automatic email reminders, and usage insights — making it a stronger fit for stores that want visual polish and basic analytics. For merchants who want to reduce tool sprawl and invest in retention across loyalty, reviews, referrals, and wishlist features, a multi-tool platform like Growave often delivers better value for money.

This article provides an in-depth, feature-by-feature comparison of ESC Wishlist + Save for Later and FAVS Wishlist Bar to help merchants pick the best fit for their store or evaluate whether a consolidated retention platform would suit their strategy better.

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later vs. FAVS Wishlist Bar: At a Glance

Deep Dive Comparison

This section examines both apps across product features, technical considerations, pricing and value, integrations, analytics and reporting, support and reliability, and implementation. The goal is to help merchants match functionality to specific store goals such as retaining customers, increasing LTV, and reducing cart abandonment.

Product Features

Core wishlist behavior

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• Provides a "saved for later" area visible under the cart, so items can be shifted from saved lists to checkout with minimal clicks.
• Supports unlimited wishlists, allowing customers to categorize saved items.
• Includes social sharing, enabling customers to share lists with friends or on social networks.

FAVS Wishlist Bar

• Adds a visual wishlist bar that can be pinned or collapsed at the top or side of pages, creating persistent discoverability while browsing.
• Allows guest wishlists (no sign-in required) — this reduces friction and captures preferences from newcomers.
• Offers automatic email reminders for price or inventory changes related to wishlisted items.

Analysis

• ESC emphasizes a classic cart-adjacent "save for later" flow, which is useful when the primary goal is to nudge checkout users back into purchasing.
• FAVS emphasizes discoverability and repeated engagement across the browsing session, which is stronger for discovery-heavy catalogs and for collecting signals from casual browsers.

Customer experience and design customization

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• Promises a range of customization options for look and feel, but specific theme compatibility and in-depth styling controls are not prominently documented.
• The placement under the cart is functional but less visible to browsing visitors than a persistent bar.

FAVS Wishlist Bar

• Marketed as a "stylish" wishlist with visual customization options that can be matched to a brand’s graphical elements.
• A collapsible/pinned bar provides persistent presence without interrupting browsing flow.
• Guest wishlist capability reduces the need for a login wall.

Analysis

• For stores that prioritize a branded storefront and sustained discoverability, FAVS has a clear UX advantage.
• ESC can still work well for stores that prefer a low-friction cart-side solution.

Engagement and reactivation features

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• Social sharing is the primary external engagement feature. It does not advertise built-in automatic email reminders or triggered messages for stock or price changes.

FAVS Wishlist Bar

• Offers automatic email reminders about inventory changes and discounts for wishlisted items. This adds a simple reactivation channel that can drive returning visits.
• Tracks usage and provides insights on how wishlist activity contributes to sales.

Analysis

• Automatic reminders are a proven, low-effort way to nudge shoppers back to purchase; FAVS’s built-in reminders reduce the need for an external email or marketing automation setup.
• ESC lacks this, so stores relying on saved-for-later as a recovery channel will need to engineer follow-up via third-party tools.

Guest usage and account requirements

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• No explicit mention of guest wishlist behavior in the provided description, but the app centers on user-managed wishlists and saved cart items — usually implying sign-in may be required for persistent cross-device syncing.

FAVS Wishlist Bar

• Explicitly supports guest wishlists, enabling visitors to save items without creating an account.

Analysis

• Guest capability matters when converting casual browsers who are deterred by account friction. FAVS wins here for initial adoption and broader signal capture.

Pricing & Value

Price points and plan structure

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• Monthly plan: $5 / month.

FAVS Wishlist Bar

• Monthly: $9.95 / month.
• Yearly: $99.50 / year (saves ~2 months).

Analysis

• ESC is cheaper on face value, making it attractive for merchants with tight budgets who only need a bare wishlist/save-for-later function.
• FAVS charges roughly double ESC’s monthly rate but bundles guest wishlists, automatic reminders, visual customization, and insights. For many merchants, those additional features can justify the price because they reduce the need for supplementary apps or marketing automation.

Value for money considerations

• For merchants focused solely on a “save for later” cart feature with minimal integration needs, ESC is likely the better value.
• For stores that want to capture browsing intent, re-engage via automated emails, and benefit from lightweight analytics, FAVS offers better value for money because it addresses more of the wishlist-to-purchase funnel.

Hidden costs and total cost of ownership

Considerations that affect the real cost beyond the base monthly fee:

• Need for multiple single-purpose apps: If ESC lacks reminders or guest wishlists, merchants will often add other apps (email plugins, analytics), increasing the stack and ongoing cost.
• Development and theme compatibility: Customization or layout fixes may require developer time if the app conflicts with theme elements or requires manual placement.
• Data portability and migrations: Extracting wishlist data during app swaps can be time-consuming.

Analysis

• Up-front monthly price does not tell the whole story. A slightly higher monthly fee that consolidates essential wishlist behavior can save money and engineering time over six to twelve months.

Integrations & Technical Compatibility

Native integrations

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• No explicit list of integrations provided; the app appears to be a lightweight single-purpose tool with limited integration surface.

FAVS Wishlist Bar

• Does not list third-party integrations in the supplied description; the app claims zero impact on store speed, suggesting a lean implementation.

Analysis

• Both apps are positioned as small, self-contained wishlist solutions without broad integration ecosystems.
• Merchants that use a marketing automation platform or CRM should verify whether these wishlist events feed into their stack (e.g., can FAVS or ESC trigger events for Klaviyo, Omnisend, or other platforms).

Theme and performance impact

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• Placement under the cart suggests interaction with cart templates; behavior may depend on theme structure and cart type (drawer, page, AJAX cart).

FAVS Wishlist Bar

• Marketed as having zero impact on store speed. While such claims should be validated through speed testing, a compact widget that defers loading and avoids blocking scripts can indeed be performant.

Recommendations

• Run Lighthouse and GTmetrix checks before and after installation to quantify any performance impact.
• Test on mobile devices and across themes — persistent bars and pinned elements can cause layout shifts if not implemented responsively.

Analytics, Reporting & Measurement

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• Provides wishlist functionality but does not advertise detailed insights or attribution metrics.

FAVS Wishlist Bar

• Includes insights about wishlist usage and how it contributes to sales, which helps merchants prioritize products, optimize ads, or plan promotions.
• Automatic reminder emails likely include basic engagement metrics (open rates, clicks) when integrated with an email provider.

Analysis

• The signal a wishlist provides is valuable for merchandising and retargeting. FAVS’s built-in insights are practical for small teams that can’t instrument a custom reporting pipeline.
• ESC requires supplementary analytics tracking or manual export to derive the same level of business insight.

Support, Reviews & Reliability

Public ratings and review volume

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• Number of reviews: 2
• Rating: 1

FAVS Wishlist Bar

• Number of reviews: 5
• Rating: 5

Analysis

• The sample sizes for both apps are small, which limits the statistical weight of the ratings. However, a 1-star average with two reviews for ESC signals potential issues merchants should investigate (bug reports, support responsiveness, compatibility).
• FAVS’s 5 reviews averaging 5 stars is more encouraging, but five reviews is still a limited sample. Merchants should read individual reviews and ask specific pre-install questions about theme compatibility, data export, and support SLAs.

Support channels and response expectations

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• No public, detailed support descriptions included. Expect lightweight developer support typical of single-feature apps.

FAVS Wishlist Bar

• Similarly, support detail is not publicly listed in the supplied data. Product Hero Ltd. likely offers standard Shopify App Store support channels.

Best practices for merchants

• Before installing, reach out to the developer with store-specific questions (theme name, expected cart behavior, wishlist persistence) to judge response times.
• Ask about data export if the store plans to change tools later.

Implementation & Operational Considerations

Time to launch and configuration

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• Likely quick to install and configure, with minimal onboarding due to focused functionality.

FAVS Wishlist Bar

• Also likely quick to implement, but branded customization and email reminders may require additional setup (email templates, permission to send notifications).

Operational checklist for installation

• Back up theme and test in a staging environment or unpublished theme version.
• Confirm compatibility with the cart type (drawer vs page) and multi-currency or multi-language setups.
• Validate wishlist persistence across devices if logged-in behavior is expected.

Data ownership and export

Critical question for merchants

• Can wishlist lists and items be exported in CSV or via API? This matters for analysis and migration plans.

Recommendation

• Ask the developer prior to installing to confirm export options and how long user data is retained.

Security, Compliance & Privacy

• Both apps deal with customer preferences and potentially email addresses if reminders are enabled. Merchants should confirm GDPR/CCPA compliance and how user consent is handled for reminder emails.
• For apps offering email reminders (FAVS), verify that email sending complies with relevant anti-spam laws and that opt-out paths are clear.

Use Cases: Which App Fits Which Merchant?

This section outlines practical scenarios where one app is a more appropriate option than the other.

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later — Best For:

• Very small stores or startups on tight budgets that need a low-cost save-for-later solution under the cart.
• Merchants who prefer a minimal, no-frills wishlist that keeps saved items directly tied to the checkout flow.
• Stores that already have an email marketing or CRM setup and want to orchestrate reminders and reactivation externally.

Why it fits:

• The $5 monthly price point keeps ongoing costs low.
• The under-cart placement reduces the number of steps to move saved items to checkout.

Limitations to weigh:

• Lack of built-in reminders and limited review volume mean merchants must be cautious about reliability and future support.
• Potential need for additional apps to fill feature gaps.

FAVS Wishlist Bar — Best For:

• Brands that want a polished, persistent wishlist UI that feels like part of the storefront.
• Merchants that want to capture browsing intent from guest visitors without forcing account creation.
• Stores that benefit from automatic email reminders and lightweight insights to drive merchandising decisions.

Why it fits:

• Persistent bar increases discoverability and guest wishlists reduce friction.
• Built-in reminders can improve reactivation without adding complex automation.

Limitations to weigh:

• Higher monthly cost than ESC and limited public review volume.
• Merchants should validate that the email reminders are configurable to match marketing policies.

Migration, Testing, and A/B Considerations

When changing or adding wishlist functionality, treat it like any other conversion optimization project.

Key tests and validations:

• Install the app on a staging theme and validate layout across devices and cart types.
• Instrument analytics events (Add to Wishlist, Remove from Wishlist, Move to Cart) in Google Analytics or your analytics platform to measure behavioural impact.
• Run an A/B test comparing pages with and without the wishlist bar (FAVS) or with and without the save-for-later area (ESC) to quantify lift in add-to-cart and conversion rates.
• Track downstream metrics: conversion rate of wishlist-to-order, average order value for customers who interact with wishlists, and repeat purchase rate.

Migration tips:

• Export wishlist data before uninstalling any app. Confirm developer support for data exports if needed.
• Communicate to customers if a wishlist feature will be migrated; explain what will change for their saved items.

The Alternative: Solving App Fatigue with an All-in-One Platform

Single-purpose wishlist apps solve immediate problems, but adding one specialized app for each retention use case leads to app fatigue: an overload of tools, overlapping features, inconsistent data, and rising subscription costs. App fatigue creates friction for growth-focused teams that want consistent customer journeys and consolidated analytics.

What is app fatigue — and why it matters

• App fatigue happens when merchants accumulate many single-function apps (wishlist, reviews, loyalty, referrals), creating fragmented data and duplicated work.
• Each additional app introduces potential integration conflicts, theme collisions, and incremental monthly fees that add up quickly.
• Fragmentation makes measurement difficult. Understanding whether wishlists convert better when paired with loyalty incentives or review-driven social proof becomes harder if each function lives in a different tool.

Growave’s "More Growth, Less Stack" proposition

For merchants looking to reduce tool sprawl, Growave positions itself as a combined retention platform that consolidates the most impactful post-purchase and pre-purchase features into a single suite. The platform bundles Wishlist with Loyalty & Rewards, Referrals, Reviews & UGC, and VIP Tiers — enabling teams to coordinate rewards, social proof, and wishlists without wiring multiple apps together.

Key benefits of consolidation

• Centralized customer data reduces duplication and makes it easier to measure cross-feature lift.
• One integration point into core systems (email, support, subscriptions) simplifies automation.
• Fewer apps mean fewer potential conflicts and simpler theme maintenance.

Growave feature highlights (examples of integrated value)

• A single loyalty program can reward wishlist activity, increasing the incentive for account creation and long-term retention.
• Wishlist interactions can inform targeted review requests or VIP tier invitations, improving LTV.
• Centralized review collection helps merchants leverage product social proof to boost wishlist-to-purchase conversion.

To review combined pricing and compare plans, merchants can view options that help consolidate retention features and lower total cost of ownership by choosing a single platform for multiple functions: consolidate retention features.

Merchants who want to preserve brand feel while adopting integrated retention features can evaluate how the wishlist works alongside loyalty and referrals in Growave’s interface and check the Shopify App Store listing to compare installation flow: install a single integrated app.

Practical integrations and ecosystems

A consolidated platform reduces the integration work merchants must do. Growave lists direct compatibility with many popular tools and channels, which streamlines automation and reporting:

• Connect wishlist and loyalty behaviors with email platforms and automation to drive real-time reactivation or reward issuance.
• Use integrated review tools to collect and display social proof alongside wishlists to better influence undecided shoppers.

For teams that prioritize loyalty mechanics, Growave enables merchants to build loyalty and rewards that drive repeat purchases using built-in program logic and reward actions. This removes the need for separate loyalty apps and manual reward fulfillment.

For brands that rely on product social proof, Growave’s Reviews & UGC feature helps merchants collect and showcase authentic reviews without stitching together disparate tools. Centralizing reviews also improves the signal used to prioritize merchandising and ad spend.

How consolidation addresses the limits of single-purpose wishlist apps

• Unified customer profiles: Wishlist items, reward balances, referral status, and reviews are associated with a single customer record, making personalized experiences practical without manual data merging.
• Cross-feature triggers: Wishlists can trigger rewards or VIP invites, and review prompts can be timed based on purchase patterns — all within the same platform.
• Reduced overhead: Fewer subscriptions and fewer vendor relationships to manage lowers operational overhead and simplifies billing.

If the merchant wants a walkthrough of how replacing multiple single-purpose apps with a single retention platform impacts operations and customer journeys, a tailored walkthrough helps put the benefits in context. Book a personalized demo to see how an integrated retention stack improves retention: schedule a demo.

Where a combined platform still requires care

• Feature parity: Some merchants may need an edge-case feature present in a specialized app. Confirm the consolidated tool covers mission-critical behaviors before switching.
• Migration planning: Moving wishlist data, loyalty points, or review history requires planning to avoid losing customer entitlements.
• Customization: Large merchants with custom storefronts (e.g., headless setups) should validate API capabilities and theming flexibility.

For high-growth merchants considering enterprise features and specialized support, Growave offers options tailored for scaled operations, including enterprise-level plans and Shopify Plus compatibility — an area worth reviewing for advanced checkout and headless use cases: solutions for high-growth Plus brands.

Pricing and total cost comparison (single stack vs many single apps)

• Single-purpose approach: Adding wishlist, loyalty, reviews, and referrals typically leads to multiple monthly subscriptions. Even low-cost apps can add $30–$100+ monthly when combined, and development and maintenance costs increase.
• Consolidated approach: A platform with multiple retention tools in one plan reduces subscription duplication and simplifies billing. Merchants should compare feature bundles and expected ROI to determine if the higher single price delivers better value for money.

Review Growave’s plans and evaluate whether consolidating features into one tool reduces operational complexity and cost: explore plan options.

Migration Checklist: If Switching from a Single-Purpose Wishlist to an Integrated Platform

• Inventory export: Export wishlist items and associated customer identifiers from the existing app.
• Customer communication: Notify customers if the wishlist experience will change and explain how to access saved items.
• Theme testing: Implement the new wishlist in a staging environment to confirm layout, responsive behavior, and speed.
• Analytics mapping: Map wishlist events (add/remove/move-to-cart) to the analytics schema used across marketing and data teams.
• Reward mapping: If loyalty is being introduced, create rules for migrating or awarding points to existing customers.
• Validation: Run parallel tests for a short period (if possible) to validate data integrity before decommissioning legacy apps.

Practical Recommendations for Merchants Choosing Between ESC and FAVS

• If the top priority is a minimal budget impact and the required behavior is “save-for-later” tied to checkout, ESC is a reasonable, low-cost option — but confirm theme compatibility and read the few public reviews to identify any red flags.
• If the top priority is brand cohesion, guest engagement, and built-in reactivation via automated reminders, FAVS is the stronger single-purpose wishlist choice.
• If the longer-term goal is to scale retention, increase LTV, and reduce the number of apps while keeping data centralized, evaluate a consolidated retention platform that bundles wishlist, loyalty, reviews, and referrals.

Key Questions to Ask Before Installing Either App

• How is wishlist data stored? Can it be exported or accessed via API?
• Does the wishlist persist across devices for logged-in customers?
• For FAVS: How configurable are the automatic email reminders? Can the merchant control triggers and templates?
• For ESC: Are reminders or follow-up triggers supported via webhooks or integrations?
• Will the app reliably work with the store’s theme, cart type, and mobile layout?
• What support channels and response times does the developer provide?

Conclusion

For merchants choosing between ESC Wishlist + Save for Later and FAVS Wishlist Bar, the decision comes down to priorities: ESC is a cost-effective, minimal save-for-later option that fits stores needing a simple cart-adjacent workflow. FAVS offers more polished UI, guest wishlist support, automatic reminders, and insights — making it better for stores that prioritize discoverability, reactivation, and merchandising intelligence.

For teams focused on sustainable growth, reducing app sprawl, and improving retention across multiple channels, a consolidated retention platform can be a smarter investment. Consolidating wishlist, loyalty, referrals, reviews, and VIP tiers into one platform reduces maintenance overhead and unlocks cross-feature campaigns that single-point solutions cannot easily deliver. Merchants evaluating consolidation can compare plans and potential savings while reviewing how an integrated approach connects wishlist activity to longer-term metrics: consolidate retention features.

Start a 14-day free trial to see how a unified retention stack accelerates growth: start a free trial.

FAQ

Q: Which app adds the least friction for browsers who don’t want to sign up?

• FAVS Wishlist Bar supports guest wishlists, allowing visitors to save items without creating an account. ESC’s description centers on saved items under the cart, but it does not explicitly advertise guest wishlist behavior.

Q: Which app includes automatic email reminders for price or stock changes?

• FAVS includes automatic email reminders as a built-in feature. ESC does not list automated reminders in its feature set, so merchants relying on reminders would need a separate solution if they choose ESC.

Q: How does an all-in-one platform compare to specialized wishlist apps?

• An all-in-one platform consolidates wishlist, loyalty, referrals, and reviews into a single suite, reducing tool sprawl and centralizing customer data for coordinated campaigns. Specialized apps can be cheaper short term or offer unique UI choices, but they often require additional apps or integrations to achieve the same retention outcomes.

Q: Given the small number of reviews for both apps, how should merchants evaluate real reliability?

• Read individual review details for clues about issues, contact the developers with store-specific questions, test in a staging environment, and validate support responsiveness before committing. Small review counts mean merchants should perform due diligence and testing to judge fit.